Legal Question in Consumer Law in Pennsylvania
I recently lost approximately $1000 of personal belongings (approximately $500 net present value) due to negligence on the part of a bus company; my luggage was stolen because the bus driver did not load them onto the bus (and a subsequent bus driver also failed to load them into his busafter it was discovered that they had not been loaded). Although the bus company's pamphlet claims a maximum liability of $50 on any luggage they transport, I suspect that this might be
1) lower than the maximum liability required by law, and furthermore
2) not applicable to these circumstances due to the amount of negligence involved.
What is their liability in this case? Is it advisable to take them to small claims court over the issue?
1 Answer from Attorneys
You have nothing to lose by going to small claims court except the filing fee. The problem is that if you were aware of the bus company's limitation of $50.00 on any luggage, that might be enforcible. Truthfully, I don't know the answer, but I sugggest that you do some research on the internet. I would simply go to google or any other search engine and tyoe in the words "PA law bus company limitation of damages. That should give you a start. I'm assuming that this occurred in PA. Perhaps another lawyer who participates on this site can give you a better answer, but doing some internet research is a good place to start.